Teachers can use play and humor to establish a climate conducive to learning and mastering effective skills in interpersonal communication classes. A classroom, wherein everyone is considered a teacher and student at the same time, is a classroom acknowledging students, promoting respect and acceptance of others' worldview on a wide range of…

A study examined the literature preferences of middle school students and centered around humorous literature. Four student groups of rural seventh and eighth graders (261 students) in language arts classes responded to a questionnaire about their preferences. Results indicated that middle school students were interested in reading humorous…

While humor can backfire or, worse, mask dark, underlying prejudices, research reveals positive and promising connections between humor and creativity, efficiency, and mental health. Although there remains considerable room for disagreement on the essential qualities of humor, several researchers after reviewing the literature appear to have…

A comparison is made of American and Japanese humor in a class of English as a second language. American humor is categorized into four types: anecdotal, wordplay, wise sayings and contrived. (AG)

This analysis looks at the humorous use of second-speaker repeats to initiate conversational repair. It is proposed that consideration of joking repeats forces reanalysis of the organization of conversational repair. The preference analysis theory is rejected in favor of a locally governed analysis of conversational repair in which participants…

Topics of the three essays in this bulletin--which originally appeared in the February, 1963, issue of "College English" and the March and April, 1963, issues of the "English Journal"--are (1) how the materials of language and poetry and the perceptions of individual minds are employed in examining a poem; (2) procedures for reading and…

One of a series of works aimed at presenting contemporary critical opinion on major authors, this collection includes essays by Henry Nash Smith, Van Wyck Brooks, Maurice Le Breton, Kenneth Lynn, Leo Marx, Walter Blair, Daniel G. Hoffman, W. H. Auden, James M. Cox, Leslie Fiedler, Bernard DeVoto, and Tony Tanner--all dealing with the biography and…

The purpose of this study was to begin exploration of the "class clown" phenomenon. Eighth grade students identified as class clowns on the basis of multiple peer nominations were compared to a random sample of classmates on: inferred and professed self-concept, school attitude, social status, and classroom behavior. Various demographic…

Discusses American journalism--specifically the syndicated columns. To show their usefulness for English teaching, Art Buchwald's "Unqualifications" is described and the text interpreted. It is suggested that for humorous aspects and language deviations be stressed; for Grades 11-13 irony, American technology and education. (Text is in…

The folklore of higher education is reviewed in these selections from a book of stories on famous professors and their classroom techniques. (LBH)

Explores how the formal television elements that constitute the ritual space of the talk show establish and contextualize the socio-centrality of the star host--specifically examining the comedy of Johnny Carson and David Letterman, examples of the Yankee character as a champion of common sense and cultural consensus. (NKA)

Humor in college and university publications is helping editors and designers communicate to target audiences. Successful campus punmakers are identified at LaGuardia Community College, Brigham Young University, and Johns Hopkins. (MLW)

Empirical studies of the connection between humor and learning indicate that humor can increase student attention and interest. Presentation of humorous material involves skills that can be learned through practice, and faculty development programs for teachers to acquire these skills should be made available. (MSE)

Four activities for language learning are presented, including: class completion of incomplete dialogues excerpted from major literary works; games for learning vocabulary and civilization using words beginning with the same letter; a lesson using cartoons to elicit description and dialogues; and a unit on appropriate and inappropriate…

Suggests three levels of reading. The first is exemplified by E. D. Hirsch's prescriptive "cultural literacy." The second is interpretive, typified by the "strong reader." The third is critical and is best suited to dealing with the complexities of poetry. (ARH)